A national survey of 977 parents with kids between the ages of 13-18 analyzed the mental health of teens since the beginning of the pandemic. Nearly half of parents have reported that their children are experiencing new or worse mental health problems since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.
The poll was conducted by Ipsos the C.S Mott Children’s Hospital at the University of Michigan medical school.
The restrictions to control the spread of Covid-19 have kept teens at home “at the age they were primed to seek independence from their families,” said poll co-director Dr. Gary Freed, who is the Percy and Mary Murphy professor of pediatrics at the University of Michigan.
Nearly half of parents said teens face new or worsening mental health issues during pandemic, poll says
Parents of teen girls reported higher cases of depression and anxiety compared to boys. Thirty-one percent of teenage girls experienced depression compared to 18% of boys. Thirty-six% of teenage girls faced anxiety compared to 19% of boys. A quarter of parents have said that the pandemic has affected children’s sleep schedule.